Biosimulation
Simulation of Living Systems

A hands-on guide to devising, designing and analyzing simulations of biophysical processes for applications in biological and biomedical sciences.

Daniel A. Beard (Author)

9780521768238, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 12 April 2012

320 pages, 115 b/w illus. 19 tables 50 exercises
25.2 x 19.3 x 1.8 cm, 0.83 kg

"...this publication does justice to its central aim of providing practical guidance in the development of mathematical models of biological systems. It would likely serve well as a textbook for a course addressing the main subject areas, and as a reference for researchers working in those areas who wish to build such models or better understand their construction." - Christopher R. Myers, Cornell University, Quarterly Review of Biology, June 2013

This practical guide to biosimulation provides the hands-on experience needed to devise, design and analyze simulations of biophysical processes for applications in biological and biomedical sciences. Through real-world case studies and worked examples, students will develop and apply basic operations through to advanced concepts, covering a wide range of biophysical topics including chemical kinetics and thermodynamics, transport phenomena, and cellular electrophysiology. Each chapter is built around case studies in a given application area, with simulations of real biological systems developed to analyze and interpret data. Open-ended project-based exercises are provided at the end of each chapter, and with all data and computer codes available online (www.cambridge.org/biosim) students can quickly and easily run, manipulate, explore and expand on the examples inside. This hands-on guide is ideal for use on senior undergraduate/graduate courses and also as a self-study guide for anyone who needs to develop computational models of biological systems.

1. Introduction to simulation of biological systems
2. Transport and reaction of solutes in biological systems
3. Physiologically-based pharmacokinetic modeling
4. Cardiovascular systems simulation
5. Chemical reaction systems: thermodynamics
6. Chemical reaction systems: kinetics
7. Chemical reaction systems: large-scale systems simulation
8. Cellular electrophysiology
9. Appendices: mathematical and computational techniques.

Subject Areas: Electrical engineering [THR], Biophysics [PHVN], Medical physics [PHVD], Biomedical engineering [MQW]